BASIC POWERBOATING. SAFETY & RESCUE FOR SAILING INSTRUCTORS 55


FLEXIBILITY OF RESPONSE TO EMERGENCIES There are usually a variety of options that you will be faced with when responding and assisting. Each situation will be different and you will have to be flexible and adjust your response to fit the situation. Your response will be affected by: E Wind (light or strong) and water (temperature and waves) conditions


E Seriousness of rescue E Physical fitness and limitations of people E Experience level of the class or fleet E Type of boat(s) E Communication systems E Availability of additional outside assistance E Number of safety boats supervising on-water session and the number of people manning them


A key factor is to organize the equipment (including safety boats) and develop emergency and rescue procedures that will maximize your options.


ASSISTANCE AND SUPERVISION Levels of Assistance


Two of the more difficult decision-making calls you will have to address are determining what kind of assistance to give and ensuring the safety of all students or sailors -- not just the people you are assisting, but the rest of the class or fleet.


Number of Safety Boats and Personnel


This affects the ability to respond, as well as maintain supervision. The ideal number of people in a safety boat is a minimum of two, especially in situations where potential rescues are high (strong winds and inexperienced sailors, or when conditions are near the sailors’ upper limits regardless of whether they be novice, intermediate or experienced). With two people, one can operate the boat while the other helps to recover a capsized boat, deal with an injury, handle towlines, or supervise the rest of the class/ fleet. If your organization has a policy of one person per boat, the procedures for response, rescue, well-being of an injured person, and class supervision have to be carefully developed to deal with this limitation.


DECISION-MAKING QUESTIONS If there is only one safety boat and an injured person has to be rushed ashore, what action could you take to ensure the safety and supervision of the other sailors? What would you do if the safety boat is manned by one person, or by two people? What would you do if outside assistance were available?


Three basic levels of assistance: 1) Advice and encouragement 2) Minimal assistance 3) Full assistance


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